Vegan cherry almond cake - this delicious vegan sheet cake is easy to make in just one bowl.
It is moist and tender with a sweet almond flavour and bursts of juicy cherry. It is the perfect cake for feeding a crowd!
This vegan cherry almond cake is a wonderful Summer/early Autumn cake.
It is a moist and tender tray bake cake, with an almondy flavour and plenty of bursts of juicy cherries.
It also happens to be incredibly simple to make and just uses the one bowl!
What Do I Need To Make Vegan Cherry Almond Cake?:
Plain flour: Just regular plain (all-purpose) flour. I don't recommend using wholemeal as that may make the cake too dense.
I haven't tested this using gluten-free flour though I suspect that a gluten free flour blend would work ok.
Ground and flaked almonds: Using ground almonds in the cake batter gives it a lovely moist texture and flavour. I believe that in the US it would be called almond flour rather than ground almonds.
I also like to scatter a couple of handfuls of flaked almonds over the top of the cake before baking. This is optional, but I like the texture it adds.
Sugar: I use caster sugar but granulated will also work. I don't recommend swapping it for brown sugar, liquid sugars or sweeteners as that will affect the texture of the cake.
Baking powder: Don't swap this for bicarbonate of soda (baking soda). They are not the same thing.
Oil: Any neutral flavoured oil that is liquid at room temperature will work. I like sunflower, olive or avocado.
Milk: I recommend using soy milk as it has the highest protein content and is best for baking. Any kind of non-dairy milk will work however, but do go for unsweetened if possible.
Almond Extract: Optional but gives the cake more of an almondy flavour. Swap it for vanilla extract if you want to.
Vinegar: This helps the cake rise. You can use lemon juice instead.
Cherries: I use frozen pitted cherries but fresh will also work (sweet cherries not sour ones). You can also swap the cherries for other fruit of your choice. Blackberries or strawberries would be good!
How To Make Vegan Cherry Almond Cake:
(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)
Whisk together the flour, ground almonds, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl until well combined.
Add the oil, milk, almond extract and vinegar and stir with a balloon whisk until no dry lumps remain.
Pour the batter into a greased and lined rectangular tin and spread it level. Scatter over the cherries and flaked almonds.
Bake the cake for about 35 minutes until golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Top Tips:
As with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup conversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!
Make sure that you don't over-beat the batter as that can make the cake tough. Just mix it until no dry lumps remain. I recommend stirring it by hand with a balloon whisk.
Feel free to swap the cherries for other fruit such as blackberries or strawberries.
This cake is best eaten on the day it is baked. Any leftovers will keep in an airtight container for up to three days. If it is hot out then store the cake in the fridge.
Can I Freeze It?:
This cake is best eaten freshly baked so I don't recommend making and freezing it in advance of serving.
However, any leftovers can be frozen in a freezerproof container for up to three months. Allow to defrost at room temperature.
More Vegan Sheet Cakes:
- Vegan jam and coconut sponge
- Vegan chocolate sheet cake
- Easy vegan ginger cake
- Raspberry, chocolate and almond sheet cake
- Vegan coffee and walnut cake
- Vegan pumpkin spice latte cake
If you tried this recipe let me know how it went! Rate it, leave a comment or tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess
All images and content on Domestic Gothess are copyright protected. If you want to share this recipe then please do so by using the share buttons provided. Do not screenshot or post the recipe or content in full, instead include a link to this post for the recipe.
Vegan Cherry Almond Cake
Ingredients
- 230 g (1 + ¾ cups + 2 Tbsp) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 175 g (6 oz) ground almonds
- 230 g (1 cup + 2 Tbsp) caster (superfine) sugar
- 3 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 140 ml (½ cup + 4 tsp) neutral oil (I like sunflower, olive or avocado)
- 350 ml (1 + ⅓ cups + 2 Tbsp) unsweetened non-dairy milk (soy is best)
- 1 teaspoon almond extract (or vanilla)
- 1 tablespoon cider or white wine vinegar (or lemon juice)
- 250 g (9 oz) pitted cherries (frozen or fresh)
- a couple of handfuls of flaked almonds
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4. Grease a 23 x 33 cm / 9 x 13 inch rectangular cake tin and line it with baking parchment.
- Place the flour, ground almonds, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and stir with a balloon whisk until well combined.
- Add the oil, milk, almond extract and vinegar and whisk until no dry lumps remain. Be careful not to over-beat the batter however.
- Pour the batter into the prepared tin and spread it level. Scatter over the cherries and flaked almonds.
- Bake the cake for about 35 minutes until pale golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Leave the cake to cool completely in the tin before slicing it.
Notes
- As with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup conversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!
- Feel free to swap the cherries for other fruit such as blackberries or strawberries.
- This cake is best eaten on the day it is baked. Any leftovers will keep in an airtight container for up to three days. If it is hot out then store the cake in the fridge.
Sarah
Such a great super easy recipe, I am in New Zealand in lockdown and made this with frozen boysenberries (as that's what I had in the freezer) worked great, delish, will be making this again and again, was thinking of looking up a frangipane recipe as this seems like the sponge part ? Thanks Hannah for your great recipes, simple instructions, handy bits of info, just love it all 🙂 Sarah
Jo
Do you think this recipe will work with frozen cranberries and gluten-free flour as replacements?
Hannah
Hi Jo, frozen cranberries would definitely work. I haven't tested it with gluten free flour but I think that it should work ok.
Shamina
Hi is it possible to make this cake without any fruits pls since I need an eggless plain cake recipe. Thk u for replying
Hannah
Hi Shamina, yes of course, it may bake a little more quickly without the fruit so keep an eye on it. I also have this recipe which makes a plain vegan sheet cake sponge (if you omit the topping): https://domesticgothess.com/blog/2021/03/30/vegan-jam-coconut-sponge/
Leah
Would this work with a cherry jam instead of whole Cherries? Thanks
Hannah
Hi Leah, I suppose you could dollop blobs of jam on top of the batter, don't mix it in though.
Cheryi
Hi Hannah, I have used gluten-free flour and it works just great. Thanks for a delightful recipe.
Sally
This cake was easy to make and an absolutely fantastic eat. The sceptical non vegans in my family demolished it.
It’s now top of my favourite bakes list, thank you!
Stephanie Marquardt
Another easy, absolutely delicious recipe. Thank you so much!
Serena
Hi there ! Do you think this cake will freeze well? Thanks in advance!
Jo
Thanks! I'll try it.
Cristina
Would you place the cherries frozen on the batter or would you let them thaw first?!
Hannah
Hi Cristina, frozen, no need to thaw them.
Kim
I made this with some alterations (and by alterations I mean I messed up) but it still turned out delicious! Instead of using 175 grams of ground almonds, I used 135 grams of FLAKED almonds and 40 grams of almond flour. How I made that mistake is a long story but it was delicious and I will make this time and again!
Raegan
This is a recipe I will come back to time and time again!! It’s perfect! Moist and perfectly sweet. Thank youuuuu!!! So so sooo delicious.
Kirsten
I made this cake today with frozen cherries and it turned out delish! I thawed them and let the extra juice drip off first because I didn't want my batter to get too moist. I used a 8x12 pan and baked it about 15 minutes longer. It's just wonderful.
Sharon Hernandez
Do you think oat flour would work instead of ground almonds? Or maybe just more unbleached white flour?
Hannah
Hi Sharon, you could try using 150g of plain flour instead, I'm not sure about oat flour.
J
This recipe has gotten good reviews from so many friends no matter if they are vegan! It's a keeper. The only note is if using cherries straight from the frozen you'll have to bake for extra time because of the wet batter.
Shannon
Super easy and so delicious! It is my go to cake to bring to parties
Suzanne
So good I could eat the whole thing!!!!! I didn’t have almond flour so I pulsed sliced almonds in the food processor. I had fresh pitted cherries and it was a great way to use them up. I’ll definitely make this again!
Josephine Royle
Love this recipe. Just made it for the 2nd time! TY
Hanna
Do you think this could be good with a creamy cheese frosting?
Hannah
Yes I think that would be delicious!
Lene
This recipe is a firm favourite in our house. It's so moist and tender. My wife and I tried making an apple version when the cherries were out of season and that was lush too! Thank you for this wonderful recipe and all of the lovely vegan work you do!
Megan
This cake is SO FREAKING GOOD! We had a bunch of use-or-lose cherries, and I did a Google search for a recipe I could use them in. I’m not even a huge fan of cherries (I’d bought them for my daughter), but oh my goodness is this cake good. I loved it, my girls loved it. I cut it all up and froze it so it wouldn’t disappear in 1.5 days. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
Heather
Excellent cake! I did not have quite enough almond flour so replaced with regular flour. Also, blueberries instead of cherries, and a little less sugar. Still so good! This is definitely going into regular rotation at our house.